Post by quincyessex on Aug 7, 2011 14:09:52 GMT -5
Google happens to be the most-used search engine, out-searching Yahoo and Bing. Created by two students at Stanford, Google was meant to become a sort of artificial intelligence. But has it worked? According to Nicholas Carr, it has. Google (and search engines in general) has altered the ways people think and the ways that people go about their research. Studies have shown that people skim through online readings and do other things, like look for article abstracts, to do research instead of actually reading the material. Carr has found that nowadays, it has become harder for him to focus on his writing and his reading due to the search engines; he said that he can skim through various bits of text on the Internet to find what he is looking for instead of having to read the entire thing. Carr also noted in his article 'Is Google Making Us Stupid?' that even time has been affected by the Internet search engines.
As a reader and a student, I can fully agree with Carr's article. I feel like Internet search engines have altered our brains, just as Carr. When asked to write a research paper, a student's (myself included) first choice of method is to use the ever-present Google. It simply makes the process of finding information easier and quicker. However, when an article or other intense reading is found, the student tends to skim through or read the first couple of paragraphs to find what they are looking for. If it is not found, then the reading is scrapped. I have noticed, for example, while writing this that it was harder for me to focus on the writing, just as Carr had noticed in his own life. I have also noticed that when I read, I become easily distracted for short periods of time and have to regroup to focus on the reading again. Carr says that the Internet is to blame, and I have to say that I agree. In his article Carr said, “The last thing these companies [search engines] want is to encourage leisurely reading or slow, concentrated thought. It's in their economic interest to drive us to distraction.” Unfortunately, these companies have succeeded in their efforts to distract us with ads, games and other such nonsense.
Even though I agree with Carr, I believe there are other ways to perhaps reprogram our minds for deep thinking and long reading. I am not quite sue how it can be done or if it would work, but if we stopped using Google, Yahoo, and Bing, even just for a little bit, maybe we could all focus more on reading, writing, and thinking. If we stop using them, then they lose 'opportunities to collect information about us and to feed us advertisements', as Carr would put it.
With all that said, it is safe to say that Carr proved his point in his article. He explained his reasoning very well. But all in all, I still do not think that search engines alone are what is making us stupid.
As a reader and a student, I can fully agree with Carr's article. I feel like Internet search engines have altered our brains, just as Carr. When asked to write a research paper, a student's (myself included) first choice of method is to use the ever-present Google. It simply makes the process of finding information easier and quicker. However, when an article or other intense reading is found, the student tends to skim through or read the first couple of paragraphs to find what they are looking for. If it is not found, then the reading is scrapped. I have noticed, for example, while writing this that it was harder for me to focus on the writing, just as Carr had noticed in his own life. I have also noticed that when I read, I become easily distracted for short periods of time and have to regroup to focus on the reading again. Carr says that the Internet is to blame, and I have to say that I agree. In his article Carr said, “The last thing these companies [search engines] want is to encourage leisurely reading or slow, concentrated thought. It's in their economic interest to drive us to distraction.” Unfortunately, these companies have succeeded in their efforts to distract us with ads, games and other such nonsense.
Even though I agree with Carr, I believe there are other ways to perhaps reprogram our minds for deep thinking and long reading. I am not quite sue how it can be done or if it would work, but if we stopped using Google, Yahoo, and Bing, even just for a little bit, maybe we could all focus more on reading, writing, and thinking. If we stop using them, then they lose 'opportunities to collect information about us and to feed us advertisements', as Carr would put it.
With all that said, it is safe to say that Carr proved his point in his article. He explained his reasoning very well. But all in all, I still do not think that search engines alone are what is making us stupid.